


The Twister Slump

by dubnationhoe



Series: My Sports Children(and others) [1]
Category: Diving RPF
Genre: Coming Out, Diver's Block, Diving, GB is a Nice Country, How Do I Tag, I should stop tagging now, JK trump ruined it, LETS GO USA!!!, Lance is pretty much an angel, Lance's my Oscar child, M/M, Or not, Tom Loves Diving, Tom has Breakdowns, Tom's my diving child, Unicorns and Rainbows, breakdowns, depressed tom??, have fun reading, have you seen their social media?, i am a hoe, i hate this, i need to stop being a hoe, i shouldnt be allowed to do this, i think im not using these tags right, i'm Very Jealous, i've lost faith in humanity, im ignoring David Boudia for Tom, im loyal to USA I promise, is this how AO3 tags work, love everywhere, slump, sorry im watching volleyball as i write this, they're so damn cute together
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-20
Updated: 2016-08-20
Packaged: 2018-08-09 18:55:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7813348
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dubnationhoe/pseuds/dubnationhoe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“We are like a seesaw: the others go up and I go down, but this time it seems like I can’t go back up…”</p><p>Where Tom Daley is in his Olympic Blues and falls into a slump he can’t get out of. Until Dustin Lance Black comes along.</p><p> </p><p>And Jane.<br/>But who cares about Jane. (Naw she does a shitton.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Twister Slump

**Author's Note:**

> Literally, I cannot get over how cute Tom Daley is and he’s so…. I can’t just I can’t. Him and Dustin/Lance (idk what to call him bc everyone else calls him Lance but is that only for people close to him???) they’re just too cute for me!!! When I found out their age diff I was pretty surprised but LANCE LOOKS SO YOUNG I GUESSED HE WAS LIKE LATE 20S EARLY 30S AND THEY’RE JUST TOO CUTE TOGETHER ITS IMPOSSIBLE NOT TO LOVE THEM!! They’re just a precious couple, man. Totally support their engagement ;) no i need to dig myself out of this pit…...
> 
> I'm....very sad........that Tom didn't make it to finals. it's so depressing and sad bc he worked so hard to get out of the slump and learn a dive that's never been done before-  
> and now he's gotta get back for Tokyo....i just rly hope he doesnt need to face another hard block or something.... but i really can't wait for him and lance's marriage! but i was Very Sad that Tom didn't make it....he did so well in prelims too..... //casually ignores my US citizenship and David Boudia is still in// I REFUSE TO WATCH DIVING uhg im becoming a hoe for GB i hate this
> 
> Disclaimer: this fic is obviously NOT truth. It’s what I’ve gathered through some articles/videos and my imagination. MOST OF THIS FIC IS FAKE. DO NOT TAKE THIS AS THE REAL THING. I swear to god literally this entire fic is fake. Besides a few things. Not sure how Tom dealt and acted with his block, so, clearly, those moments are FAKE. This is my work and please do not plagiarize. If you wish to translate this, please ask before doing so, and I will see.  
> Also, I got this prompt from my friend ;)
> 
> Warnings: this fic is mainly about Tom’s divers block. Basically a slump. Which means self-deprecating thoughts and attitude. A breakdown , so if that triggers you, I don’t think it’s a good idea to read it. Although I suck at writing those things, I don’t want to risk readers getting triggered, so although not very descriptive, if you don’t like those things or get triggered, please don’t read. ALSO! Tom, as most know, is engaged to Dustin Lance Black. Obviously, there will be a gay relationship here, but nothing too deep.
> 
> Anyway, with that all out of the way, please comment!!! PLS COMMENT! There also needs to be more lance and tom fics...honestly im dying here they’re too cute..  
> PLEASE COMMENT DO COMMENT! SUGGESTIONS OR REQUESTS!

**_Winning bronze in_ ** the Olympics was almost a dream. The constant congratulations and cheering always reminded Tom that yes, he _did_ win an Olympic medal. When his brothers teased him for being third, he set his sights on gold. Gold isn’t going to be easy; anyone knows that. Getting bronze was already hard, and topping China in diving is no easy feat. Only polishing and executing would give him a chance. Maybe throw in a new dive.

The Olympic blues hit Tom hard. The slump came when his coach told him to practice his first dive that almost failed in London 2012, ready to film and correct. Standing on the 10m platform made him freeze.

It was London 2012 all over again. Fear shot through him, taking over his body instead of the normal rush of adrenaline. He unconsciously expects some flashes to his left, impairing his vision and possibly making him fail the dive, no matter if there was no one in the stands. _I can’t do it. I’m gonna fail. I’m gonna hit the water at 30+ mph. I can’t do this._ He nearly broke down, gathering enough of himself to stand upright on the end of the platform to actually do what his coach wanted him to do.

Even after the dive, Tom thinks he still can’t do it.

The slump drags on and gets worse. The Dive has been named _Demon Dive_ and Tom absolutely hates it. Never before has he hated a dive as much as the _Demon Dive_. It’s at these moments Tom wishes his dad would be there to pick him up.

Tom hates it. He absolutely hates it. Diving, his dives, everything. This isn’t going to work well.

A few months after the Olympics, Thomas Daley decides he doesn’t really like diving.

  


**_“Mom, I’m going_ ** to quit diving.” Tom tells his mom. His mom gives him a look with a small sigh.

“Alright, Tom, if that’s what you really want.” She gives a shrug. “I advise heavily against it. You’ve worked so hard, and it would be a waste to give up now.” Tom knows it’s a bad idea to quit, especially when there is nothing else he’s good at. Never mind the entire country hoping he’d bring back gold in 2016.

“I don’t like diving anymore.” Tom murmurs, glaring at the table. He doesn’t know if his mom thinks he’s serious or not.

“Tom, if you want to take a small break from it and pick it back up when you feel up to it, you can,” his mom offers.

“I can’t,” Tom denies. “I have to do this.”

“Tom, I don’t want you falling deeper into this slump. It’s already bad enough as it is.” Tom nods, knowing his state with diving right now didn’t exactly give his mom  worry-free days. Maybe he really should quit diving.

Except coach almost slapped him for saying that.

Everything was _fine._ Perfectly _fine_ . Except for that _dive._ They would avoid the dive for a bit, then try it out. And each time, Tom froze.

It dug him deeper into the slump.

 _Why can’t I get this dive? Come_ on _Tom, you can do this. No. I can’t do this. I’m gonna fuck up. I hate this._

Tom sighs, his hands supporting his head. _I’m a mess_ , he realizes. _I’m a fucking mess._

  


**_“Um, yeah, sure_ **.” Tom tells his friend. It’s been about 7 months since the Olympics, and Tom is still battling his slump. Besides diving, Tom had other things to do. Some of them brought him to America, more specifically, LA for the Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards.

“I’m probably going to be late.”

“It doesn’t matter, man,” Tom’s friend replies. “Just be there. Lots of cute girls! I’m sure you can pick one up no problem, since you’re eye candy.” Oh how Tom’s love life is non-existent. Tom nods and promises his friend he’ll be there, moving along to where he needs to go.

Tom heads for his friend’s house as soon as he can, no doubt late for the party. He really should be practicing his dives right now.

When he arrives at the house, he already regrets it. A few girls notice him and come up to talk to him. Tom plasters on a smile and polite words are exchanged. It isn’t a surprise to Tom when they start congratulating him on his Olympic medal. He thanks them with genuine smiles, ignoring the growing burden forming in his stomach.

They’re nicer than Tom expected, not the kind of girls who try too hard to suck up to him. They ask him a few questions that he answers and asks a few back. The party is like any other party. A few people turn to see who came in, then turning back to their own business. Tom looks around, his friend already heading towards him.

“Wow,” Tom says. “It’s crowded.”

“No kidding,” The blonde next to him says. “It’s always like this. Is it like this in England?”

“I wouldn’t know,” Tom murmurs. A flash of red catches his eyes, focusing on a guy wearing a red hoodie and a leather jacket near him. _Oh wow. Who’s that? He’s cute…_

“Tom! You made it!” Tom looks next to him to see his friend greeting him.

“Yeah, I couldn’t pass up your invitation,” Tom grins. “Anyone here I would know?”

“Well, it might depend. There are some more known people.” Tom kinda zones out, looking at the guy in the red hoodie for a bit longer before trying to focus on what his friend is saying.

It was during dinner when Tom finally found out the guy’s name. After stealing a few glances at the cute guy, and getting caught a few times, his friend finally told him the hoodie guy’s name. Dustin Lance Black. Tom has never heard a Dustin Lance Black, but his friend said Dustin Lance Black won an Oscar, so he must be known. Tom ignored to teasing as he looked up ‘Dustin Lance Black’ on his phone.

This Dustin Lance Black guy is _hot._

Tom momentarily freezes when he sees the age of this guy, because there is _no way_ that Dustin Lance Black is _20 years_ his senior. Tom looks up, noticing Dustin staring at him. Their eyes hold for a second before Tom looks away first, paying attention to his friend.

 

 _Dustin Lance Black is the hottest person Tom has ever met_.

  


**_Okay, so maybe_ ** Tom did stupid things in his life. Putting his phone number with a wink face in Dustin Lance Black’s phone was one of them. He might just regret it.

Might.

But Dustin Lance Black texts him, so Tom doesn’t regret it. They agree to meet at a bar at Tom’s hotel, and they meet pretty late in the night.

After introductions(and Tom learns, that yes, Wikipedia has not been lying to him; Lance is, indeed, 20 years his senior) they start talking about their life.

It takes one hour for Tom to get hooked into Lance, and four hours for him to fall in love.

Never before had Tom connected with someone nearly as well as he has with Lance.

 _Shit_ , Tom realizes. _This isn’t good. Why am I like this? Why am I feeling like this?_ Tom already knows the answer to that.

“You dive right?” Tom nods at that. “You’re gonna teach me how to dive someday,” Lance says with a grin. Tom laughs lightly.

“Alright! First lesson: the proper way to enter the pool from a dive."  


 

 **_“One more time.”_ ** The dreaded words fell from his coach’s lips. Tom wants to cry. For some odd reason, his coach has been pushing him to keep polishing that one particular dive. The one that no one likes. The _Demon Dive._  

Tom hates it. He hates diving. He hates his coach. He hates this _dive._ It’s the first time he’s hated a _dive_ . Everything else was absolutely _fine_.

“Come on, Tom. You can do this!” Tom breathes out, exhaling through his nose. He steps forward, trying to focus.

 _Just a few twists and shit and it’s over. It’ll be over in a second._ Tom releases another breath. _Okay, yeah, no_ . The height doesn’t scare him anymore. The fear is about _failing_ the dive; especially on the 10m where you could do a bellyflop at 34 miles per hour.

Tom jumps around nervously, hands shaking as he tries to control his nerves. _I can’t do this. Oooh my god I can’t do this_. Anxiety builds up inside him, making him restless and unable to stand still. Millions of thoughts flash through his head, doubts flying everywhere, making it impossible to concentrate.

It was a bad day again.

“Fly, Tom!” Coach Banks calls, but Tom can barely register any voices as his heart races. Unconsciously, his breathing gets faster as he stands on the edge. He can only hear his heartbeat as he tries to calm down enough to do the actual dive. A flash of uncertainty rushes through him and he steps away from the edge, jumping nervously.

“Oh my god I can’t,” Tom whines to himself as he shakes his hands. The nerves aren’t just going away.

A rush of confidence and _I-don’t-care-what-happens-next_ fills him and he’s standing at the edge again. Tom has given his coach hell, with his unmotivated and tired attitude, just done with everything. The slump has robbed Tom of his future. Injuries didn’t make it any better, preventing him from entering other competitions and sticking with basic dry-land training.

When Tom forces himself to jump, his body moves automatically before he can think about it. The dive feels okay, Tom realizes when he comes up, looking at his coach.

Coach Banks lets out a long sigh, a slight shaking of the head. Tom’s confused for a bit, tilting his head sideways. It hits him a moment later that he did a _different_ dive  


 

 **_It’s Tom’s 19th_ ** birthday and thankfully, Lance was in the area 

They met up at a party, hanging out together and catching up on times. They plan for a more private meeting, a date(Tom almost blushed at the wording) the next day.

Like any meeting with Lance, it was pleasant. Meeting Lance just made everything better. It made him looser. It made him do things he usually wouldn’t do with people.

Including getting drunk with someone on the first date.

“Hey, Tom?” Lance murmurs. Tom looks at him, giving him his attention. “Will you be my boyfriend?” Tom momentarily freezes, shocked. Because wait, _Lance feels the same way?_

“Never mind,” Lance says before Tom can say anything. “You don’t need to answer that.” But Tom _wants to_. Before he can say anything, Lance is asleep.

Tom looks over at Lance when the sun shines brightly, waking him up. Lance is also awake, peering at Tom while groaning softly at his headache.

“Yes.” Tom says. Lance gives him a confused look.

“What? What do you mean ‘yes’?”

“Yes. I’ll be your boyfriend,” Tom replies. A slow grin crosses Lance’s face, and Tom can’t stop one from forming on his.

  


**_“Mom, I’m dating_ ** Lance.”

Tom tells his mom first. If his mom doesn’t accept him, he doesn’t know what he’ll do. Thankfully, _thankfully_ , his mom isn’t against it at _all_. She had small doubts of their age difference, but nothing else, and it gave Tom the confidence to tell more people.

“What did they say?” Lance asks nervously as Tom sits down. A smile automatically forms on his lips.

“They’re fine with it,” Tom says as if he can’t believe it. “Well, besides my brothers. They think I’m lying. A late April Fools or something. But the others don’t mind!” Lance wraps his arms around Tom in a hug, his head resting on Tom’s shoulder. Tom has always loved the feeling of Lance’s strong arms around him.

“I’m so happy,” Lance murmurs. Tom hums in agreement.

“I’m happy too.” Lance looks at him from his position.

“There is something on your mind.” Sometimes, Tom appreciates the way Lance can tell how he’s feeling.

“I don’t know,” Tom starts. “Won’t it be annoying for you if no one knows and people keep crowding around me?” Tom doesn’t know how jealous Lance can get, since Lance hasn’t shown his jealousy before. But sometimes, Tom can just _sense_ Lance’s annoyance and jealousy when a crowd of girls come over to take pictures with him. The fact that he told Lance he still has some attraction to girls doesn’t make it any better.

“No, I’m fine, Tom,” Lance says.

“Really?” Tom asks in a doubtful voice.

“It’s not something you can avoid and I get that. I’m fine with it,” Lance replies in a firm tone that easily demonstrates how many times he’s used it. “Why?”

“I want to tell everyone.” Tom states. “Everyone who knows me.”

“You mean… you want to tell the world? Come out as gay?” Lance questions.

“Yeah.” Tom says. “In a video.”

“If that is what you want to do, I will support you all the way, Tom. You know that.” Lance says.

“Do you want me to?” Tom asks.

“I wouldn’t mind at all if you did, or if you didn’t. I’ll support you if you do.” Lance, of course, not pushing or rushing Tom at all. “I’m worried about the public.” Tom understands that.

It could go terribly, with his career possibly ripped away, or it could be accepted with support everywhere.

Obviously, they were hoping for the latter.

And it was the latter they got.

Immediately, it was all over the news, support flooding in with little to no hate. Surprisingly, instead of lesser girls coming up for pictures with Tom, _guys_ came as well. Tom got offers for interviews on television, and that was even before he revealed Lance.

As for his slump? He’s getting out of it, and he’s never been this much in love with someone.

  


**_“Lance! Lance Lance!”_ ** Tom calls, a huge smile on his face.

“Hey babe,” Lance grins, greeting him with a hug.

“I can’t wait!” Tom exclaims when they break apart. The two were going to live together in London, and Tom would be getting a new coach: Jane Figueiredo. She was considered one of the best diving coaches in the world, and Tom couldn’t wait to train with her.

He’s met her once before, and that was to see if Jane liked him. When she told him to come back, Tom knew it was about time to move to London.

“Alright, babe, let’s go,” Lance says, patting Tom’s back as he grabbed their suitcases. The two talked the way there, ignoring the people surrounding them when they were out in public. Occasionally, Tom would get asked to sign something to take a picture. Occasionally, Lance would have to endure it, pushing down the growing annoyance. _Tom is just doing what any normal famous person would do_.

It takes them a few more hours to settle into their new home together, putting their things away and lifting boxes into the apartment. Sadly, with much frustration, the couch with the British flag on it wouldn’t fit in the lift, so they were forced to physically move it up the stairs the next day.

And Tom still had to train with Jane.  
  


 

 **_Jane was different_ **. Different than a normal coach. A lot different than Coach Banks, Tom’s old coach. Tom has done a variety of exercises, most of them ones that he’s never done or heard of. Jane was always thinking of new things 

Including having Tom take ballet lessons to improve grace.

The two got along fine. A little bit of frustration here and there, obviously unavoidable, but they got along. When Jane wanted him to do the twister dive, they ran into a bigger problem.

Because obviously, that dive failed Tom in London 2012 Olympics. It wouldn’t be Tom’s first choice of a dive. Jane knew what the dive was. She knew Tom had a psychological battle with that dive, and nothing Tom tried worked.

The only thing they can do is avoid it as much as they can. Except sometimes that doesn’t work, and it hits Tom _hard_.

  


**_Tom has a_ ** breakdown in the middle of practice at the pool. It hits harder than the previous ones. Jane might’ve pushed him a bit more than usual, but Tom pushed himself more than he could take, leading to the breakdown.

Tom didn’t hear people yelling and talking around him, their voices muted as the sound of his heartbeat and breathing got louder. It feels like his heart is trying to rip out of his chest and he barely registers someone wrapping his arms around him.

He’s shaking violently, muttering self-deprecating statements and worries, panic filling his body.

“Tom! Tom please! Come on, Tom,” Someone is trying to get his attention, and Tom looks up after multiple calls of his name, meeting the eyes of Lance. Jane stands behind him, worry on her face, but Tom only focuses on his boyfriend.

“Tom,” Lance says. “Do you hear me?” Tom manages a jerky nod and Lance frowns.

“Stop that.” Tom is confused until he realizes his lips have been saying things that he’s never said out loud. _I suck. I can’t do this. I hate diving, I hate this, I hate the pool. I want to quit._

“I- I-” Tom stutters, eyes staring at Lance.

“Alright, babe, calm down, take deep breaths, you are fine.” Tom tries to do what Lance says, taking deep breaths and forcing his heart rate lower. After a few minutes, Tom could feel himself calming down.

“I- I think I’m okay,” Tom breathes, clutching at Lance’s arm.

“What happened?” Lance asks softly after a moment. “I got a call telling me to come immediately and you’re here panicking.”

“I- I don’t think I can do that dive anymore.” Tom whispers. “I just _can’t_ . The rest of the divers in the world, it’s like a seesaw; they go up and I go down, but this time it seems like I can’t go back _up_ . I’m _stuck_ here. At the bottom.” There’s something in his voice that makes Lance pull Tom into a tight hug, whispering assurances into his ear.

“I assumed such,” Jane sighs. “We’re scrapping that dive.”

“What?” Tom asks, surprised.

“We’re getting rid of it. For good. It’s not a good dive if you panic every time you go up to do it. It would be a shit decision to keep a dive that’s destroying you.” Jane explains, taking a few steps forward. “Practice ends here. Take a break, Tom. Get your game back and ready in two days. I want you in an attitude to learn and able to conquer something new. We aren’t doing that dive anymore, so you don’t need to worry about it.” Jane leaves after that, clutching her iPad. Lance helps Tom up, rubbing his arm in a comforting gesture.

“Come on, Tom. Let’s go back home.”

 _Home_. In Lance’s arms.

  


**_“Tom,” Jane says,_ ** “we are going to learn a new dive.”

“What?” Tom gives Jane an incredulous look. “Did I…”

“You heard me, Tom,” Jane confirms. “You’re gonna learn a new dive. Here,” Jane shoves her iPad into Tom’s hands. “This is what it looks like.”

“Oh, someone’s done it before?” Tom asks.

“Not exactly,” Jane replies. “It’s been done in a circus. You’ll be the first _diver_ to do it.” Oh. Well that doesn’t make Tom feel any better.

“Jane,” Tom says after he’s seen the video. “They did this off a Russian swing.”

“Yeah,” Jane nods.

“A Russian swing,” Tom repeats. “A Russian swing can easily go above 10 meters, you do realize that right?”

“Yes,” Jane repeats. “Who says that you can’t do it? I believe in you, Tom! We can pull off the hardest dive in the world!” Tom gives Jane a skeptical look.

“Okay.”

“Alright. We’re going 3m springboard first. We are going to tear this apart and conquer each part, then put it together. We have months to do this, and training will be tough. We don’t have another choice anyway. So, Tom, we _will_ do this.” Jane says with confidence that infects Tom.

“Right.” A slow smile crosses Tom’s face. “We’re going to get this dive down.”

  


**_Lance sees the_ ** smile on Tom’s face and knows things have gotten significantly better. Tom runs forward to give Lance a hug, murmuring how much he’s missed Lance.

“Aw I missed you too, babe,” Lance grins. “What’s got you in a good mood?”

“Lance,” Tom says in an excited tone. “I’m learning a new dive!” Shock fills Lance. A new dive? There isn’t much time until the olympics, more than a year, but not enough to learn a new complicated dive. But if it’s Tom…

“Oh, Tom, that’s great!” Lance exclaims. “You don’t need to do your other dive!”

“Yeah! I know!” Tom nods. “It’s a pretty hard dive, but Jane and I can work on it to perfection. With this new dive, I have a fighting chance to win 10 meter platform!”

Lance can see the happiness and excitement in Tom’s eyes as he explains all the mechanics to the new dive.

 _Oh,_ Lance thinks, watching Tom with a proud smile on his face. _He’s falling in love with diving again._

**Author's Note:**

> PLEASE DO COMMENT!  
> COMMENT WHAT YOU LIKE, DON'T LIKE, SUGGESTIONS, REQUESTS, ANYTHING!  
> JUST COMMENT!
> 
> I also have the [Italian translation here](https://www.wattpad.com/story/84934116-the-twister-slump-tom-daley-italian-translation?utm_source=web&utm_medium=twitter&utm_content=share_myworks&wp_uname=Gioo_22&wp_originator=oJelfvrwNasMsW4MldRK0h1aPpVAFBQPNwpADvhaswSx%2B2MTUh2cDRHb7eRxLFC0NSEcvWHiBkHi6wfUklk47cQTyx06hBdvNKIk%2FWz8ER6yuOismdSSEEdi0dtIOhBY&_branch_match_id=306144001460310395) thanks to the beautiful gioo_22!


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